Matt Wandell is a biologist at the Steinhart Aquarium at the California Academy of Sciences. His work involves feeding the animals, cleaning the tanks and making sure everything in the aquarium stays healthy. Wandell also participates in research expeditions to survey coral reefs and collect organisms. He was a key scientist in developing a portable decompression chamber for fish that allows divers to safely transport fish from deep in the ocean’s twilight zone up to the surface. Getting paid for what he loves to do makes this his dream job, he says.
This video is part of our Engineering Is: Bringing Fish Up from the Deep e-book. The e-book explores the science and engineering principles behind the California Academy of Sciences’ portable decompression chamber, and includes videos, interactives and media making opportunities. You can find our other e-books at kqed.org/ebooks.